Renewable energy industries will be at the heart of regional population growth and opportunity, experts say

A third of all Australians - just over 9.5 million people - live in regional areas.

A key goal stemming from Regional Australia Institute's (RAI) 'Rebalance the Nation' report is for that number to grow to 11 million people by 2032 and 35 per cent of that population to be made up of those aged 15 to 39.

RAI chief executive officer Liz Ritchie said young people were critical to the regional workforce as renewable energy opportunities expanded.

"The technology is moving at such a pace that the younger generation are learning this currently," Ms Ritchie said.

"[Young people] bring an awful amount to regional communities ... they're coming with careers that provide pretty solid salaries that get re-circulated through the local economy."

Ninety-seven per cent of Australia's renewable electricity is already generated in the regions and according to the Business Council of Australia, will create 195,000 new regional jobs over the next 50 years.

Modelling by the Australian Conservation Foundation showed more regional jobs will be created by replacing fossil fuel industries with renewables.

It found that installing rooftop solar on one million homes would create 26,484 construction jobs and 6006 jobs in solar farms.

The equivalent power in wind energy would create 5558 jobs. Comparable power from new coal and gas would only create 3573 and 652 jobs respectively.

The Rebalance the Nation report also aimed for government to double the proportion of new migrants settling in regional Australia by 2032.

Ms Ritchie said the swift uptick in population numbers experienced by some regional towns and the initial strain on housing, services and infrastructure throughout the pandemic could act as a warning that urgent planning was required.

The latest data from the RAI's Regional Movers Index showed from March 2020 to June 2022 millennials made up an average of 51 per cent of regional movers across all states and territories.

"Because it's happened so quickly, we're not ready and we've got the squeeze of housing and services. We cannot get the right skills and labour that we need, because we can't get the numbers out there fast enough, because we don't have everything else in play," Ms Ritchie said.

"If we learn from the current situation that we're facing today [we] need to plan what we want our nation to look like, and population sits at the heart of that."

But not everyone agrees regional Australia should be aiming to grow its population.

Sustainable Population Australia (SPA) chief executive officer Jenny Goldie said the nation should be aiming to reduce its population to reduce emissions.

"I think it's irresponsible to avoid [talking about population reduction] because you can't provide ecological sustainability just by looking at affluence and technology alone," she said.

SPA advocates for family planning, such as education and birth control, continued inclusion of ageing populations in the workforce, and a low-immigration policy with increased overseas aid to support family planning in other countries.

There is the issue of global social responsibility to take on climate refugees, given Australia is the 14th biggest emitter of greenhouse gases in the world, contributing just over one per cent of global emissions.

"It's the moral issue of the day really, and it's one that I battle with on an almost daily basis as does the organisation," Ms Goldie said.

"But we can't take all the potential climate refugees from around the world, so who do we take and how many?

"We have a moral obligation to take people from the Pacific Islands ... Australia is the closest major nation and a well developed nation to them."

The conversation around population reduction has reignited with the United Nations estimating the world population will reach eight billion on November 15.

But Climate Council researcher Dr Simon Bradshaw said talk about population reduction to meet sustainability goals was a distraction, and it was more productive to focus how Australia generates its energy.

READ MORE:

"I'm hopeful Australia is going to really grasp the enormous opportunity it has to play in a constructive and outsize role in the world's energy transformation," he said.

According to a recent report by Beyond Zero Emissions, Australia could build a clean export industry worth $333 billion by 2050.

Dr Bradshaw points to the Gladstone region, in central Queensland, as an example where transformation was possible.

Gladstone has been called the heart of Australia's fossil fuel industries.

"There we're starting to see all sorts of opportunities for new clean industries open up; everything from clean manufacturing, including green metals, to recycling, battery components, many other things," Dr Bradshaw said.

"Those opportunities are there, but we need to have appropriate support to ensure that as coal plants close as coal mines close, that there is a vision for Australia's regions ... where everyone's brought along."